The sound of leisurely footsteps echoing through the corridors of the imperial palace was followed by the sound of urgent footsteps. Yukar waved his jade-colored hair and closed the distance between himself and Carlix.
“Your Majesty, I am offended, but I would like to remonstrate with you.”
“I hate it.”
“Yep.”
Yukar immediately silenced her with a firm dismissal. But she soon moistened her lips with her tongue, as if she was nervous.
“Your Majesty, please…”
Carlix, leaving Yukar’s moaning voice behind, reached the library. The sentry who was waiting bowed silently, opened the grand door, and stepped aside. When the door split open, a quiet space with cold silence and the strong smell of books appeared. The emperor’s library was a place they mainly used for private conversations. Carlix leisurely headed to the window.
“Your majesty.”
When he saw Yukar come in, quickly closing the door, he waved his hand as if he was annoyed.
“Let’s hear it.”
Yukar’s green eyes flashed.
“Her Majesty, please allow her to investigate her.”
“She?”
“A woman named Lucina Langfort!”
Yukar twisted his face and grabbed his clothes.
“If something happens to the princess, I… I am…!”
Yukar closed his eyes tightly, as if he had witnessed the tragedy. When it came to matters related to Rubelin, the nickname ‘Iron Wall Chief Aide’ was useless.
“Ha.”
Carlix burst out laughing.
“If anyone sees me, they’ll think I’m your nephew.”
Yukar put down the clothes and brightened his eyes resolutely.
“Your Majesty, please allow it. This is a world where witches who possess people’s souls still exist, so I guess I should investigate further.”
“Yukar. Does she mean to be a witch in her own right?”
Carlix turned around with an expression as if he had heard something absurd. The reddish glow drenched Carlix’s hair.
“Even if she’s not a witch…”
Yukar, who continued speaking, glanced at me.
“I feel sad about the defeat of the Kingdom of Tedan.”
“So much.”
Yukar lightly closed his mouth and sighed. Even I knew it was an advanced idea. The defeated kingdom of Tedan withered away, and its remnants became slaves to other countries. The princess who could not kill 2nd Prince Alec was already helpless as she was sold as a slave to a foreign country and could not even confirm whether she was alive or dead. Nevertheless, when it came to matters related to Rubelin, Yukar felt uneasy even if he stayed up all night for three days, assumed the worst case scenario, and made a decision. Although he had cast three or four layers of protection magic around Rubelin, there was nothing he could do about his anxiety. Yukar sighed and looked at Carlix.
‘Your Majesty is worried, but you don’t even show it…’
Yukar was submerged in the water and dissipated a gloomy energy.
‘Chamberlain, I need to order Linell to keep an eye on her.’
Yukar sighed deeply, as if deliberately trying to make her listen. Carlix was shocked by his lieutenant’s actions.
‘At that level, it’s a disease.’
Is it even appropriate to conduct another investigation on a topic that has already been thoroughly cleaned of not only genealogy but even a speck of dust from Lucina’s family? Carlix clicked his tongue briefly and turned to his window. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall.
“A witch.”
Hundreds of years ago, after the clan that used black magic died out, the only female survivor among them was called a witch. Her name and age were unknown, and only rumors spread that she appeared and disappeared somewhere. But Lucina Langfort, she is a witch. Carlix burst out laughing at the absurd assumption. Obviously she’s not a witch or anything. Carlix recalled his first meeting with Lucina. A woman with her clear, glossy light brown eyes and soft hair. Her face was pale, and the sight of her trembling on her knees, looking up at her, looked like a hamster about to be eaten.
‘Sometimes you get hurt in places you can’t see, Your Majesty.’
On such a topic, she looked straight into her eyes and expressed her beliefs. How absurd it was to see her running towards Rubelin without hesitation and holding him in her arms. A woman whose breath would disappear at the touch of her rubelin held and protected a child who was stronger than herself.
‘The princess considers that woman to be her biological mother and follows her. Perhaps that is why the princess unconsciously controls her superpowers.’
After hearing Ken’s report, he had doubts. This was a problem that could not be solved even if excellent educators and wizards were invited. She simply recognizes herself as a ‘mother’ and is capable of controlling superpowers. That wasn’t the only thing strange about her. Carlix frowned and closed his eyes.
‘Older brother!’
The sight of Alec returning as a corpse was vivid in his mind. The king of the Kingdom of Tedan was a man who could not understand the subject. The king, who was evil and lazy by nature, used his daughter, the princess, to make Alec his son-in-law. Although Alec repeatedly made rude and arrogant trade demands in the name of being the second prince of the empire, Carlix persevered. Until my brother came back with his limbs torn apart.
‘Who is left?’
‘Except for the remnants of the defeated soldiers who escaped.’
After hearing Yukar’s report, Carlix looked around at the blood-covered King Tedan and scoffed.
‘I can’t believe I stayed in a place like this. Alec, what happened to his head? He is not worthy of being used as territory.’
‘Your majesty…’
It was the moment when Carlix turned away from Yukar’s call. Ugh-! A child’s cry rang out from the empty royal castle’s small room. As Carlix entered the room, a loud cry was heard that was deafening. Carlix saw his life there. There was a baby crib lying in the middle of the place, covered in fresh blood. A baby with red cheeks and tears like dew. With his faintly flowing dragon magic and Alec-like appearance, there was no doubt that he was of imperial blood and a descendant of a dragon.
Clink –
The sword fell from Carlix’s hand. Carlix, who unconsciously reached out for the child, was shocked when he saw his own hand.
* * *
Hands stained with fresh blood with black thorns tangled in a disorderly manner. It was overflowing with magical power that would threaten a child just by touching it. Carl Rix clenched his hands helplessly. Carlix turned around while watching the child who was crying in a loud voice telling Wang Seong to go away.
‘Your majesty!’
At that moment, Yukar ran into the room. Yukar found the baby and dilated his eyes.
‘Your Majesty, that child could not possibly be…’ … .’
‘Yukar, I’m taking the child.’
‘Your Majesty, you are taking my child away!’
Ugh-. The child seemed to understand Yukar’s words and cried even harder.
‘When you no longer need it, just kill it.’
‘Your majesty! Your majesty!’
Carlix interrupted his reminiscence and opened his eyes. It was an impulsive action that my normal self would not have done. Even I had doubts. Was there a need to bring something that could be killed?
‘Ugh!’
I was just concerned about the desperate cries of people refusing to die. Perhaps it’s because it reminds me of my younger self in a distant memory. Is it because of our first meeting? From the time we met until now, the child has always cried in front of me.
‘Oh, no… My ass…’
Rubelin was the first to stand up and make his point. When she saw her, she got scared and was busy hiding, but this time she rushed in and protected Lucina. Carlix looked down at his right hand with an expressionless expression. Around the ring on his middle finger, long, dark thorns stretched out like vines and wrapped around his knuckles. The words of our ancestors were recorded in ancient books. [Only the strong can control this ability.] I know that this ability does not mean physical strength. Apart from the superpowers that he had mastered since birth, powerful magical powers always bothered him. From the time he was a child, when he began to discern between interests and interests, all the lives he touched turned dark and rotted away. When Carlix became an adult and his father’s illness worsened, he set off in search of an artifact that was said to be able to seal magical power recorded in an ancient book. After going through many hardships, Carlix found a ring buried in a monster swamp. The result was a ring that greedily occupied his own finger. The process was not smooth. The ring absorbed his magical power and gave him an unfamiliar pain that cut through his bones, and the magical energy accumulated in the ring exploded, transforming into a grotesque form once every six months. After much effort, Carlix proved that he could use his magic safely with the help of the ring and succeeded to the throne. He looked down coldly at the dying figure of his father, struggling for breath.
‘I have inherited the throne, so feel free to leave.’
‘You… You ended up…!’
However, contrary to what I thought, I did not feel refreshed or happy.
‘Older brother. I will leave.’
Alec was a man with a quick laugh but keen insight. Alec knew that he would become the seed of a civil war, so he set out on a journey to establish Carlix’s imperial power.
‘Brother, I hope you stay safe until the day we meet again.’
From then on, Carlix lived a life that was contrary to Alec’s free life. Carlix eliminated and exterminated all the civil servants who had advised him to be imprisoned forever and the military officers who had been sending assassins endlessly since his childhood. Carlix felt doubt and anger as he looked around the battlefield without any warmth. Why did he have to live in such confinement?
‘All you have to do is kill and subjugate anything that bothers you.’
It doesn’t matter if everything you touch perishes and fades away. Why do I have to hide this power? However, contradictory to that, Carlix could not remove the ring. He was still uncomfortable with his small and fragile life. Years passed since then, but without the ring, Carlix could not control his overflowing magic. So it was questionable.
“For what she is.”
Lucina Langfort, what is she that made Rubelin so strong? What is it about her that she can control her superpowers, unlike herself, who cannot use magical powers without the ring? Carlix raised his gaze and looked at the sky beyond the transparent window. A light purple cloud resembling Rubelin’s hair caught my eye. The sight of her flowing hair tangled with straw-colored hair came to mind. Red cheeks and pursed lips. He stares at himself with round eyes, and when our eyes meet, he quickly lowers his eyes.
‘You’ll find out if you watch.’
Carl Rix narrowed his eyes and interrupted his thoughts. When he turned around, Yukar was still looking at him with a gloomy expression.
“Your Majesty, I am also the one by your side. Do you mind if I investigate further?”
Carlix frowned and waved his hand.
“If it poses a threat, just kill it. What’s the problem?”
Carlix headed toward the door without any hesitation. Yukar made a groaning noise and then stepped back as if he couldn’t do anything.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
I could no longer raise my voice because I knew that if he had to kill the emperor, he would kill him without the slightest hesitation. Yukar sighed so softly that it was hard to hear. Sweet. The door opened, and Yukar turned in the direction of the master and bowed his head again. Carlix stopped moving as he left his library room. He stared at the jade-colored hair that fell like a waterfall.
‘Is there anything else you want to say?’
Yukar lowered his head and rolled his eyes under the focused gaze.
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Translator Note:
Hello there! This is RJR. I hope you liked it <3
If you like my work please support me with Ko-fi or Patreon. Next post will be released on March, 8.
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